The ICE Cube Engagement Induction Framework (Part – 1)

This is the first of the 2 posts of the series – Planning the perfect induction program for your company.

Imagine…there are some guests at your door. You open the door, say ‘hello’, hand them a mug of coffee and just walk away…

This is how a lot of organisations welcome their new employees. Whenever a new employee joins the team, they are provided a Welcome Kit, shoved into a classroom, bombarded with information over 3 days and sent on their way. The employee is expected to be productive and efficient from Day 4, and we wonder why they are walking about looking dazed and confused…

It is well established that effectiveness of ramp-up of new employees is a key driver for organizational success. Companies with well-structured Induction programs have 54% greater new hire productivity, 50% greater new hire retention and 69% greater long term employee retention. These numbers can significantly affect the course of a business. So, what does it take to make an induction program more effective?

The trick lies in the systematic planning of the what, when and how of the learning that is delivered to the new employee. This is what the ICE CUBE Engagement framework aims to help you with. There are three aspects to think about when planning an induction program:

SCOPE – What is it that the employee needs to learn

There is too much to say but too little time for it. We need to define the scope of the information of what the employee needs to know. Often, due to the huge volume of the information, we struggle on how to start with it. Well, this should help you.

This information can be divided into 3 key blocks:

Industry – This refers to content that is about the industry that the company operates in. Examples would include evolution of the industry, domain knowledge, regulations, etc.

Company – This refers to content that is about the company itself. Examples would include history of the company, organization structure, processes and policies of the company, etc.

Employee – This refers to content that is about the employee himself. Examples would include welcome kits, job descriptions, key responsibilities, behavioral norms, etc.

STRUCTURE – What kind of knowledge is it

Once you know the scope of the content, now you filter out the information. While structuring the information, you should decide on things an employee must know and understand. This will help you focus on things which are important.

This information can be divided into 3 key blocks:

Information – This refers to the data-based content that an employee should know. Examples would include industry evolution, organization structure, employee id, etc. These are the elements that are critical to give the employee context of his workspace.

Concepts – This refers to the conceptual content that an employee should understand. Examples would include domain knowledge, processes, job description, etc. These are the elements that are critical to give the employee context of his job.

Expectations – This refers to ideals that an employee must adhere to. Examples would include industry regulations, company policies, expected norms, etc. These are the elements that are critical to give the employee context of his behavior.

STYLE – When and how should the learning be communicated

Not everything can be learnt in a classroom or by simply going through an elearning module. Decide how and when you intend to communicate the learning. In some cases, a classroom session would be perfect whereas for some On-The-Job training would be more effective.

This information can be divided into 3 key blocks:

Instructor-led – This refers to the learning being disseminated in a classroom or workshop environment, ideal for discussion-based learning or attitude orientation of employees.

Coaching – This refers to learning being disseminated through on-the-job activities or through interactions with a buddy, mentor or coach, ideal for building expertise and skills.

E-learning – This refers to learning being disseminated through self-paced learning delivered via technology, ideal for continuous and referential learning.

Now you are familiar with all the three aspects of the framework. To make things simpler, I have put them together into a grid. Here’s how it looks.

ICE Cube, get it?

In my next post, I will take you through the process of creating the perfect induction program using The ICE Cube Engagement Induction Framework.